Mungolian Jetset - Mungodelics (Smalltown Supersound)

As a band, Mungolian Jetset have always been a bit of a puzzle. First appearing on mysterious twelve-inch singles that were as diverse as they were weird, their reputation began as mysterious mischief makers in the vein of The KLF. Their debut to the masses was the two-cd singles and remix collection, We Gave It Away, Now We Are Taking It Back, which highlighted a sound that was part disco, part prog, part Krautrock, and part unclassifiable weirdness. Their proper debut, Schlungs, appeared last year, and the sound was refined, yet somewhat at the cost of losing the initial charm and oddness.

Now Mungodelics appears. Is it a proper album, a collection of remixes, or a collaborative album? Well, in actuality, it’s all three. Including collaborations with a number of people (most notable, Jaga Jazzist), Mungodelics is heady, slightly trippy dance music. It’s hard to tell where and who does what, exactly, but maybe that’s the point; this is the sort of music you take at face value, to be enjoyed for what it is. And what it is, though, is nothing short of enjoyable. Whether it’s the German elements of “Mush In The Bush,” or the jazzy drone of “Toccata,” or the trancelike disco of “Ghost in the Machine” and “Smells Like Gasoline,” the key ingredient to their music is rhythm, which is something that Mungolian Jetset (and their friends and co-conspirators) can masterfully produce. Mungodelics is the sort of space-age party record that you play for close friends at 2 AM, after the riffraff leaves.